The Lion King III: A New Beginning
by Krisadilli
Summary: After Princess Kiara and Prince Kovu are married, many things have happened. Kopa has returned, along with Mheetu, Chumvi, Tojo, and Tama. Vitani and Kiara have their children, and there's discord among the cubs and adults.
1. Prologue

_**Author's Note: **__I've had this idea in my mind for a while. There's a few changes with the original story line. Like, Zira is not actually Nuka and Vitani's mom. She adopted them. Also, Kopa is Kiara and Tanabi's older brother. Kiara and Tanabi are twins. Imara (Immy) and Gemara (Gem) are Dotty and Spotty, and they're twin sisters._

___I do not own Lion King or any of the characters. If I did, then I'd be extremely happy._

___Read and review! XD_

___~Silvie_

_**

* * *

Prologue**_

Kovu roared at the top of Pride Rock. It was the day after his marriage to Kiara, and Simba and Nala told him that to truly be the heir to the crown, he had to roar in front of all the African animals. He was nervous at finally being prince, but he was glad that he didn't have to kill Simba to become king. He was content to wait until Simba died from old age to take the throne. He knew that he wasn't ready to be king just yet, even after all his mother's training. Kovu glanced down at his sister, who he just found out was not his sister at all, but his adopted sister.

Vitani watched as her adoptive brother took his place with the royal family. She loved him as though he was her birth brother, but she had always been closer to Nuka, her true half-brother. Their mother, Tama, had abandoned them when Vitani was just an infant, and Nuka a young adolescent. She had always wondered why Nuka didn't talk about Tama as their mother, but instead called Zira "Mother." Vitani hadn't found all this out until she and her pride joined Kiara's pride.

x.x.x

Her mother had padded up to her and licked her ear. "Vitani…" Tama had murmured. She was the same age as Nala, and she had had Vitani only a little before Nala had had Kiara. Vitani was surprised at the affection of another lioness, besides Kiara, Imara, and Gemara. The twins' mother had passed away right after Zira took over the Outlands Pride, under mysterious circumstances, and Imara (Immy) and Gemara (Gem), had become fast friends with Vitani. It didn't hurt that they were the three best hunters in the Outlands. Anyway, Vitani had been surprised, and a little suspicious, when an older lioness, about Nala's age, licked her ear.

"Who are you?" she growled, backing away from Tama. She saw the hurt in Tama's eyes as she backed away.

"Vitani, I'm your mother," Tama said, pleadingly.

Vitani shook her head. "Nuka always said that you abandoned us. Are you saying that that was all a lie?"

Tama hung her head. "I couldn't look after you two, and Scar never liked the fact that I had Nuka, a male cub, in his pride. He forced me to hand both of you over to Zira just before Simba came and dethroned him. In a way, I did abandon you, but it was for your own good. Plus, I knew that Nuka would look out for you. Speaking of Nuka," Tama looked around. "Where is he?"

Vitani avoided her mother's gaze as she muttered: "Nuka died…trying to prove himself to Zira. A log fell on him and crushed him."

Tama gasped with pain as tears filled her eyes. Her only son…gone. Forever.

Vitani looked up at Tama, and murmured, "Zira loved us like we were her own. Maybe not as much as Kovu, but she still loved us. She was a good mother."

"Better than I ever was," Tama said bitterly. "Zira was a good friend to me, before she went mad, that is. She was great fun to be around. She always knew how to cheer up the younger cubs, including Mheetu."

At the sound of his name, Nala's little brother padded out of Pride Rock and sat next to Tama. The lion had his father's lean build, and black mane and tail. He had his mother's pale coat, and kind personality. His eyes were a pale green, and he looked at Vitani with interest. "I've heard a lot about you, Vitani," Mheetu said, smiling.

Vitani curled her lip teasingly, and turned away.


	2. Chapter 1

_**Author's note:** Saffy is Sarafina, Nala's mother. Mheetu is the son of Sarafina and Scar. Chumvi, Tojo, and Kula are triplets._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Lion King, or the copyrighted characters. I may have renamed some (i.e. Scruffy = Nolan, Imara = Dotty, Gemara = Spotty) but that is it. I do, however, own Manny, the daughter of Kula and Mheetu._

_Read and review!_

_~Silvie_

_**

* * *

Chapter One**_

"Tani. TANI!" Vitani snapped out of her daze. "What? What is it?" She turned to her husband, Tojo. "What is it, Toj?"

Tojo shook his head in mock embarrassment. "Saffy wants you for a hunting run. Are you up to the challenge?" His blue eyes twinkled mischievously.

Vitani nudged him hard, playfully. "Of _course_ I'm up for it! You couldn't _pay_ me to stay home and get even fatter, even if I _am _pregnant." She smiled at him.

Tojo licked her ear sweetly. "Just be careful, okay? I don't want to lose you like I lost my sister."

Vitani pressed her nose to his cheek lovingly. "Don't worry; I'm not going anywhere. Anyway, I bet Kula is looking down on us now, happy that you found love at last." She stuck her tongue out at him and raced away to join Sarafina, Nala, Immy, Gem, Scruffy (now called Nolan), and Manny (Mheetu and Kula's only daughter).

x.x.x

Kiara watched her sister-in-law join the hunting run. She wished that Kovu would let her go on one. She was so bored being cooped up in the cave all day, but Kovu, like Simba, was very protective of her, and wouldn't let her out of his sight. She sighed, and laid her head down on her paws, thinking.

Chumvi padded up to Kiara, and touched her shoulder. "Hey girl. What's new?"

Kiara sat up and said, "Well, Mr Monkey Man told me that I'm having twins. Oh joy." She rolled her eyes sarcastically.

Chumvi laughed, and said, "Well, Tani's expecting Tojo's twins too. I think you two are due at about the same time; maybe even the same day."

Kiara smiled sardonically. "If that happens, then I won't blame Rafiki if he wants to leave the pride to live on his own for the rest of his life."

"Speaking of Rafiki, isn't it time for him to choose a new shaman? I mean, he's gonna die soon, isn't he?" Chumvi asked.

Kiara nodded. "He went back to his clan to see if any of the younger baboons want to become the next shaman. He should be back in two days."

Chumvi nodded. He watched his brother play with his birds. "I can't believe Tojo's birds have grown so big. I remember when they were so tiny, that Simba and I used to chase them all around, trying to eat them."

Kiara glanced at Chumvi. She had forgotten that he was the same age as her father; he seemed so much younger. "What was my dad like when he was a cub?"

"A lot like you, actually," Chumvi chuckled. "He was a little trouble maker. But of course it didn't help that he had me and Tojo by his side, and then Malka came over every once in a while. Then, when Mheetu was a toddler, he would follow us four all around. Unfortunately, your father never got to know Mheetu very well; he ran away when Mhee was only three weeks old."

"Did you guys include Nala, Kula, and Tama in your fun?" Kiara asked, intrigued.

Chumvi nodded, eyes darkening when he thought of his sister. "We played so many pranks on the girls, and when Simba and Nala found out that they were going to be married when they were older, well, Tojo, Malka, and I had so much fun teasing them. Even Tama and Kula joined in from time-to-time." He fell silent as he remembered how his sister died.

"How did Kula die, Chumvi? No one will tell me."

Chumvi took a deep breath. "It was about a month after we had formed our small pride. I was the lead male, with Tojo and Mheetu as my backups. Kula and Tama were our girls. Mheetu fell in love with Kula, and a couple months later she gave birth to Manny.

"One day, when Kula, Manny, and Tama were out hunting (Tama had already given birth to Nuka and Tani and had given them up), Manny came racing back to where we were lounging. 'Dad, Uncles, come quick! Mom's hurt!' Manny cried. Mheetu jumped to his feet and raced off in the direction from where she came from. Me n' Tojo followed quickly afterward.

"When we reached the spot where Kula had fallen, she was already starting to leave us. Mheetu was crouched at her side, murmuring into her ear. Tama was trying hard not to cry, while Manny buried her nose in Kula's fur. Me and Tojo just stood there like idiots, watching our sister die.

"Finally, Tojo whispered to Tama, 'How did this happen?' Tama replied, 'A wildebeest kicked her in the chest, breaking her ribs and collapsing her lungs. There's nothing we can do.' I just stared as my sister passed away.

"You see, me, Tojo, and Kula were triplets. When one of us was hurt, the other two could feel it. So when Kula died, it felt like a third of me died with her, and I know Tojo feels the same way. I know you have Tanabi as your twin, and Kopa as your older brother," Chumvi murmured, turning to Kiara, "but you will never know what it feels like to lose part of your soul."

"Excuse me?" Kiara snapped. "My older brother was attacked and nearly killed by Zira. He couldn't find his way home and he ran off to live with some hyenas, my father's archenemies. Then, Tanabi was stolen from my mother's side when he was just a day old. I have always felt as if a part of me were missing. Now that Kopa's back, some of that hole has healed, but until I know what happened to Tanabi, I will never be whole."

Chumvi rested his paw on her shoulder. "I'm sorry; I forgot. But, you do know that we brought Kopa back to you, right? The day of your marriage to Prince Kovu, we arrived at Pride Rock—with Kopa. That was one of the reasons your father let three males stay in the pride—because we brought home his eldest son. I'm just glad that Kopa has grown out of his 'I must be King' stage and has allowed Kovu to take the throne. I wasn't sure how he would deal with that, but I believe he made the right choice."

"Thanks, Chumvi," Kiara murmured. She closed her eyes and promptly fell asleep.


End file.
